Have a question for the antiracism trainer?

Post your questions here for Carmen Van Kerckhove. We'll pick the best ones and post his answers.

What is racism?

Most people think racism is all about white hoods, burning crosses, and racial slurs. But racism isn’t limited to intentional displays of hate and prejudice. Racism also includes the belief that physical and intellectual abilities can be attributed to racial differences.

Many people, for example, think that all blacks are good athletes, or all Asians are good at math and science. These are “positive” stereotypes, but they’re still racist because they reduce individuals to two- dimensional caricatures.

Van Kerckhove says, “In order to work against racism, you first have to see it. Take a critical look at pop culture, for example, and analyze what messages are being disseminated about different racial groups. Here are some questions to get you thinking.”

• Why don’t Asian men, even when they’re the heroes, ever get the girls in movies?
• Why do we see so many movies about heroic white teachers working in inner-city public schools and inspiring their mostly black and Latino students? Why do we rarely see similar movies about teachers of color who do the same?
• Why is every cast member of the new MTV reality show Maui Fever white when it’s set in Maui—a place where, according to the 2000 Census, 60% of the population identifies as Asian, Native Hawaiian, or multiracial?
• Why does almost every sit-com about a non-white family have a dark-skinned father and an extremely light-skinned mother? Why don’t you ever see a light-skinned man paired with a dark- skinned woman? What does that say about standards of beauty and how they correlate with race?

What can I do about racism?

Van Kerckove says, “The most important thing you can do is educate yourself: read books, watch movies, talk to people. Know that ideas about race were developed over history and used to oppress certain groups while giving power to other groups.”

“What stereotypes exist about your racial group? How have those stereotypes affected you? Have you ever felt at a disadvantage because of a stereotype about your race? Has a stereotype about your race ever given you an advantage over someone of a different race?”

“Become more aware of your own beliefs. What racial stereotypes do you believe in—even just a little? Why do you believe those stereotypes? How can you overcome those beliefs?”

back to the beginning